Remember Me As A Time of Day
by hse07
Summary: Jesse Cardoza has died, and the CSIs all struggle with their grief...but in the light of grief and pain is also friendship, closeness and a team reunited.
1. Chapter 1

Calliegh Duquesne sat out by the water, and she was sad. Not even three hours ago, she was laughing and talking with her friend...and now he was gone. Eric came up from behind her then. She knew he was there, but said nothing at first.

"I made plans to have a drink with him if we broke this case.", Eric said. "We were going to go and have a drink. And now..." His voice broke. Calleigh turned to look at him. He was so beautiful, even now in his grief.

"He looked up to you. Since you've been back, that's all he's done. God...I miss him.", she said. Jesse Cardoza. She didn't want to like him, knowing full well he was Eric's replacement. But his smile, and his personality...they were infectious.

"I feel so guilty. H and I knew. We knew, Calliegh. We tried to get there in time, and we just couldn't. I tried to get to you. And when I saw you lying there on the floor, I just...I...I..." He was crying now, and she turned him to face her.

"You did, Eric. You _did_. You saved me, Eric."

"Oh, I thought I lost you, Calleigh. Even now, it feels like you're so far away. And I feel like I can't get back to where we were, that day, that beautiful day."

"You're right. We can't get that day back. We can make new days. Eric...I...I love you.", she said, blushing. She grabbed his face and turned him to look at her.

"I love you." He looked at her for a second, and a piece of him died inside in the best way possible. The words he had been waiting three years to hear had finally come. Now he could lose himself in her. His best friend.

"Oh, baby. I love you so much. So much, Calleigh." She laughed and they kissed, long and deep. And despite all the tragedy and the loss they'd had today, they both felt they were going to be okay.


	2. Chapter 2

Ryan sat in the morgue, staring at the sheet. He didn't want to believe it. He knew. H had told him, and Natalia had told him, so he knew...but he just wanted to wake up and have it be a dream.

He didn't want to like Jesse. Eric was his best friend...but Jesse's personality was infectious. He grew close to Jesse and Walter, and now Jesse was gone. So Ryan just sat there, staring at the sheet, tears streaming down his face.

"Ryan.", H said from behind him. He came and placed a hand on Ryan's shoulder. Tears were flowing down Ryan's face, and upon Horatio's arrival they flowed faster.

"Everyone else is fine. We have some sore throats and all, but other than that, we're fine. Jesse...he had to hit his head. He had to fall and hit his head on the floor."

"Fate can be a cruel bitch." Horatio said.

"H, he was protecting me. I feel, and he caught me, and then we both fell. I landed on him. I crawled for a bit...and then I just...fell. He screamed out something about Natalia, and then I lost consciousness."

They both stared at Jesse for a while, and were joined then by Natalia. Tears were streaming down her face.

"Oh, God.", she said quietly. Ryan reached out to grab her hand, and she gripped it fiercely.

She placed her head on his shoulder and began to cry uncontrollably. Ryan turned and held her with both arms, comforting him. In this moment, he loved Natalia more than he ever had before. This woman, this incredible woman, had the capability of so much caring, and so much love, in her heart. Ryan wasn't an idiot. He knew there was something between her and Jesse. He'd seen the way she reacted when Jesse stood her up, and the way she was around him. Yet in this moment, they could share comfort in each other.

Horatio stared at his two CSIs, wondering how the world became so screwed up. People were always trying to break him and his tream up. He was a likeable enough guy, or so he seemed to think. Sure, closed off, kept his emotions in check, but...likeable. Yet still he seemed to be targeted. He would always like Jesse. As a boss he tried not to pick favourites. He had a special, almost fatherly place, for Eric, being that he'd almost married Marisol, and that they'd been through so much together...yet Jesse was one of the good ones, and Horatio had grown quite fond of him.

"Goodbye, Jesse.", he said. Then he put on his shades and walked out into the Miami sunshine.


	3. Chapter 3

Walter stood watching the waves roll back from the beach to the ocean. He missed his friend. He was probably closest to Jesse, save maybe Ryan.

"This is it, Jesse. Hope you're doing okay up there. I'll see you in a little while." He threw his basketball up in the air.

Calleigh Duquesne joined him then. She didn't say anything, she just stood beside him, watching the waves.

"Jesse would stand here and watch these same waves. He'd say that it was like a song. The rhythm is always the same...forward and back, forward and back.

"Yea. It's beautiful."

Eric walked up on the other side of him then.

"Hey, man. How you doing?", he asked.

"Oh, you know. My best friend is dead...because he fell. No one shot him, or tried to poison him, or anything like that. He just...fell down."

"Well actually...he fell down because of the gas, man. So, someone did try to kill him."

"Yea. I guess you're right." They all resumed watching the waves for a second, and then Walter spoke again.

"I called his mom. Did you know that she only has one kid? Yea. Jesse was her pride and joy. Her "shining star." That was hard."

"I'm so sorry, Walter.", Calleigh stated.

"Yea. So am I. Look, if anyone needs me, I'll be playing ball."

He walked away, and Calleigh turned to watch him go for a second.

Eric sat on the ground and began playing with the sand on the beach. Calleigh joined him, and they touched hands softly.

"So, what now?", Eric asked gently.

"I don't know."

"Calleigh, what do you mean? I mean, are we together? Are we not together? Life's too short, and I held you in my arms and thought I'd lost you today, so if you're still unsure, then just tell me right now. Because if we do this, I need to know that it's real."

"I don't know. My friend just died today. I love you, Eric, I do. I'm just...scared."

Eric knelt in front of her.

"And you think I'm not? I am so unbelievably frightened for the future, Calleigh. Just...being with you makes me feel like a better person, like I can survive anything."

She gazed into his eyes, and could see they were filling with tears. He put his head down.

"Calleigh. Please.", he whispers.

She tilted his face up to meet hers and gazed into his beautiful brown eyes.

"Okay.", she said. He stared at her for a minute.

"Okay?", he asks, smiling.

"Okay.", she said, and he embraced her. They stood up, and he spun her around. She laughed, and then he kissed her again. God, he could kiss her forever. Finally, he had her. He loved this woman, more than any other. Finally.


End file.
